Friday, July 1, 2016

Hello!
How is it that it's July first already?? I feel like all of a sudden the holiday weekend is upon us and I didn't see it coming. Do you have plans? We are glad to be home and resuming a tradition we started with friends. On that note...

What do you do for the 4th? Growing up, my town had an amazing celebration with a parade, followed by a picnic at the park, followed by fireworks at night. Like straight out of a Hollywood movie! That's what friends said when I brought them home with me from college or they came to spend the 4th with us. They couldn't get over it. So now we are home in the PNW and are excited to resume our tradition. We always go over to our friends' house to go see the fireworks with them. They have 5 boys and our kids have grown up together. This year we are headed over to their house for dinner. We are going to put on a movie to let the kids relax after dinner. Fireworks don't start till 10 or 10:15 out here so it's a late night. From their house we can walk to a park and watch the fireworks. What are your plans??

We had some gorgeous weather this week. My husband was off the first couple days after returning from a work trip so we took the opportunity to enjoy some family time. We had a blast at Denny Park. There's a playground and it's right on the lake. I thought the kids would run screaming from the cold water but actually they said it wasn't too bad. It's definitely not the Bahamas... but it's still water.

Tuesday was haircut day. Suri got a bang trim, not wanting to be left out. Levi wanted a little more length on top so he can do "spikes". We celebrated summer with some Menchies ice cream after.

Tuesday was also the last day of spring semester gymnastics. The kids all get a ribbon for their participation. Suri was happy to pose with hers. So proud of her for everything she has learned!

Today is Friday and that means it's another #Freshsqueezedfriday brought to you my my friends from the Primary Punchbowl. This week I've marked down my back to school theme math task cards to $1. These are normally $7.50 so this is a great deal! Last week I grabbed a classroom decor and labels set for $1. There are some GREAT deals. Just search #freshsqueezedfriday on TpT and you can shop some awesome dollar deals.

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Hello!
Happy first Friday of Summer! At least it is for me and most teachers here in the PNW. To those of you well entrenched in summer... hope you are enjoying every minute of it.

I confess I haven't been as good about taking pictures this week. Not really sure what got into me... oh yeah... summer. ;) But I'll still share a look back at my week. Here's what we've been up to...

My husband has been in Charleston all week for work. He rarely gets to travel for work and this was an opportunity to take a class he was really interested in. I'm just glad it was during summer break so I didn't have to reconfigure everyone's daycare arrangements. He comes back tomorrow. We have survived the week and the kids have been great but we miss daddy and are ready for him to come home.

I have an interview! I'm so excited! A neighboring school district called this week and I am scheduled to interview for their hiring pool Tuesday morning at 10:30am. I'll interview first and then do the writing assessment... a parent newsletter. Easy peasy! So what to wear???
I'm thinking this dress with my red flats and a long navy dressy cardigan over it. Or should I go for the classic suit?

My husband and I booked our first trip away without our kids! We are so excited! We are going to Vegas at the end of July for 2 nights. We'll be staying at Cesar's Palace... so a fun change from The Venetian from the TpT conference the past two years. Can't wait! We plan on lots of pool time and walks along the strip in the evenings and a show as well.

Well I finished Bel Canto and I have to admit... It wasn't my favorite. I kept with it because I wanted to find out what happened. I was pretty disappointed in the ending. Anyone else read it yet? What did you think? I'm on to my next book and so far it's way more promising... I'm starting Still Life by Louise Penny. It's the first book in her Inspector Gamache series. So far it's way better than Bel Canto. And since it's a series there's lots more to enjoy!

Lastly, it's Fresh Squeezed Friday! All summer long my fellow teachers from The Primary Punchbowl and I are marking down one product in our stores to $1. You are welcome to join in if you'd like. Send me an email and I can get you the image. Search #freshsqueezedfriday on TpT and on Instagram to find great products for only $1.

Today only you can grab my sub plans pack for only $1. All you need is the book The Pigeon Needs a Bath by Mo Willems and my unit and you're ready to go for 1 to 3 days!

Thursday, June 16, 2016

Hello!
Happy Friday Everyone! Guess what today is??? THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!!! YAHOO!!! So excited for summer. And our weather is set to become summer-like starting on Sunday. I'm linking up for 5 for Friday to share 5 happenings this week. Thanks to Kacey from Doodlebugs Teaching for hosting!

My little man graduated from Pre-K on Saturday. He started the school year in the Bahamas in a fabulous Montessori class. Here he is this past September... Note the tan and blond hair.

Here he is on Saturday. First pic is him with his two teachers. Two very patient women who integrated a little boy in January from a Montessori environment to a preschool environment and from a different country back into his home country.

Here's the happy graduate...

His sister was a little jealous that he got to graduate on a big stage and wear a graduation cap. I told her that her time is coming... :)

Don't you love Facebook memories? This one popped up this past week. A year ago my husband and I pulled off an epic surprise. We picked Suri up from school and Levi from a playdate and took them to the airport under the premise that daddy forgot something at work. They figured out they were going somewhere once we pulled the suitcases out of the back of the truck. We didn't tell them where til after we checked in for our flight. We surprised them with a trip to Clearwater Aquarium in Florida to visit Winter and Hope from the Dolphin Tale movies. We had such a great time. Look at my island babies in this picture!

Thanks for all the pup advice! Pup is headed to puppy kindergarten as soon as I call to sign him up! I think that will help a lot. He's such a sweetheart and is learning to enjoy morning walks with me.

Did I mention that today is the last day of school??

Remember last week when I told you about my favorite reading blog The Modern Mrs. Darcy? Then I mentioned that she has a podcast called "What Should I Read Next?" I started listening to the podcast in the car on the way to school and on the way home from school. I even make my kids listen to it. I just LOVE the format. She talks with guests and each guest has to share 3 books they love, one they hate, and what they are currently reading. Based on their reading lives she then recommends 3 books and asks them what are they going to read next. My list of holds at the library grew exponentially this week!!! So what am I reading right now? Two books... one parenting/professional and one fun one...

I can't say enough good things about this book. This book has dramatically changed the way I interact with my kids at home and at school. I'm excited to put it into practice in a classroom in the Fall.

And for my fun read: Bel Canto by Ann Patchett

Basically there's a birthday party being held somewhere in South America for a Japanese businessman. He didn't want to come. They lured him there by inviting his favorite soprano. The party is being held at the Vice President's house. The President was supposed to attend but decided not to at the last moment. He stays home to watch his beloved soap opera. The guests at the party are taken hostage and as you can imagine, things get interesting from there. That's all I'm going to say at the moment. I'm only about 25% of the way into the book and I am hooked!

Thursday, June 9, 2016

Happy Friday!!! I'm so ready for Friday, how about you? Here in the Pacific Northwest we have one more week of school left. Summer is coming... summer is coming... summer is coming. If I say it enough I'll believe it.

Here's what I've been up to lately...

I accepted a long-term sub job 3 weeks ago that lasts until the end of the year. I am a support staff in a social emotional classroom that has 6 kiddos in grades 2-6. I have been learning tons about how to manage those high teacher time intense behaviors. When I (hopefully) have my own classroom in the fall I will be equipped with all sorts of new tools to manage behaviors in my room. I'm looking forward to resuming my teaching career after 3 years off. Year 16 here I come...

Anyone else still in school? Anyone? Anyone?

We got a puppy! His name is Hundley. We got him on May 6. He is now 3 months old and has almost doubled in size from these pictures. He was just at the vet and has gained 10.5 lbs in 3 weeks. Now we have to monitor his joints to make sure he isn't growing too quickly. He's a golden doodle and we are all in love... except for dealing with the house training and biting. Any puppy experts out there with great advice? I'm all ears! :)

Well if there is anyone else out there in school and you're in need of last week of school activities, I finished this unit this week and got it posted in my store.

When I taught second grade I always hosted a "Before we Split for the Summer Banana Split Party". It got me thinking... why not make a unit based on the banana split theme for the last week or two of school? So I did! :) I'll definitely be using this next year in my class. It includes a mini how-to writing unit on how to make a banana split. There are fun word activities like word unscramble, word search, abc order, and a boggle type activity. I included a glyph for an art project and a fun BINGO game. And then there's everything you need to host a banana split party. Except for the ice cream, of course. :)

Any teachers out there who love to read? Anyone looking for some great book ideas for what to read this summer? Have you discovered The Modern Mrs. Darcy yet? I LOVE her blog. It's where I find most of my books I want to read. I just discovered that she has a podcast! GASP! It's called "What Should I Read Next?" (Insert sound of Goodreads list growing here) I'm addicted! I listen to it on walks in the morning with Hundley, to and from work, at night in bed, etc... Here's the link and here's hoping you find some great summer reads!